Please HELP!!! I Have Never Cruised Celebrity Before!!!!

Hello Everyone,

My DH and I are thinking about booking our first Celebrity cruise on the Summit (June 2018). We have both cruised Carnival before 3 times actually, and we now looking for an upgrade due to our last cruise..

Can anyone comment on the night life as we are both in our mid-30's and love to dance at night.. What is the average age group on board? How is the food because we are both major foodies.. lol.. Is their drink package worth it? Can you get most drinks with the classic drink package or is the premium package the only way to be happy?

PLEASE ANY COMMENT OR CONCERNS ARE WELCOME!!!!

Thanks in advance and Happy Sailing!!

:*:*:*:*:*:*

We are also in our mid 30's and we find the entertainment lacking on Celebrity but better than Princess our only other point of reference. On our last cruise, we'd find a band or guitarist that we liked but then they'd only play 20 min before moving elsewhere on the ship.

The main shows are ok, but not great (we go to Vegas a lot and must have higher standards).

The few nights we did go to the night club, I think the audience was deaf because the had the volume so loud we had to leave.

If you are talking ballroom dancing, then we didn't see any happen on our cruise.

Now this may sound like a lot of negatives, but we still enjoyed it enough to book another one.

So while the entertainment wasn't amazing by our standards we found enough to keep entertained or entertained our selves.

Food, we like the food on celebrity quite a bit. We found that for us we couldn't eat more than a few nights in a row in the MDR as the food was often heavy and/or rich. So we change it up in the buffet some nights or a specialty restaurant.

Beverage packages are subjective, we are beer snobs and often drink the $9 and up beers onboard. Combine this with sparkling water and scotch. We are happy with the premium package. Are we 100% that it wouldn't be cheaper to buy each drink individually, no. But at the end of the day I'm on vacation and I don't have to wonder what my bar bill will be. If I'm thirsty and I want it, I order it. If I don't like it I leave it.

Hope this was helpful from another 30 something.

-A

We are also in our mid 30's and we find the entertainment lacking on Celebrity but better than Princess our only other point of reference. On our last cruise, we'd find a band or guitarist that we liked but then they'd only play 20 min before moving elsewhere on the ship.

 

The main shows are ok, but not great (we go to Vegas a lot and must have higher standards).

The few nights we did go to the night club, I think the audience was deaf because the had the volume so loud we had to leave.

 

If you are talking ballroom dancing, then we didn't see any happen on our cruise.

 

Now this may sound like a lot of negatives, but we still enjoyed it enough to book another one.

So while the entertainment wasn't amazing by our standards we found enough to keep entertained or entertained our selves.

 

Food, we like the food on celebrity quite a bit. We found that for us we couldn't eat more than a few nights in a row in the MDR as the food was often heavy and/or rich. So we change it up in the buffet some nights or a specialty restaurant.

 

Beverage packages are subjective, we are beer snobs and often drink the $9 and up beers onboard. Combine this with sparkling water and scotch. We are happy with the premium package. Are we 100% that it wouldn't be cheaper to buy each drink individually, no. But at the end of the day I'm on vacation and I don't have to wonder what my bar bill will be. If I'm thirsty and I want it, I order it. If I don't like it I leave it.

 

Hope this was helpful from another 30 something.

-A

Thank you so much this has been very helpful

The avg age will be older than Carnival by at least 20 yrs. There will be significantly less kids, no belly flop or hairy chest contests. I can't comment on the food compared to Carnival as it has been a few years since our last Carnival cruise.

The overall vibe is more relaxed & refined than Carnival. Not as much night life, but we have found folks to hang with & music to dance to until 1ish on most sailing.

I'm not in my 30's (in my 50's) but I would say the passengers on Celebrity are typically a little older than 30's. Not all of them, but most. We have found that the activities, dancing and shows on Royal Caribbean are much more lively than those on Celebrity, which tends to be a bit more sedate. Our son is 28 and we have taken him on several cruises and he prefers the nightlife and shows on RCL. Hope this helps. I always get the premium drink package but my husband and son are always perfectly happy with the classic drink package.

We are around 50 and find Celebrity a little inconsistent with the nightlife. It really depends on the cruise. The shorter cruises (7 days or less) tend to have a slightly younger crowd especially in the summer. Longer cruises will have an older crowd and the nightlife can be a challenge. But either way don't expect a crowded hoppin lounge after 11pm. Typically there will be a band playing till around 12 then usually a DJ if there is enough people still awake. The bands vary wildly in quality and music they play, the DJs usually play typical modern stuff. We normally sail on the S-class ships and most of those have a real nightclub, the Summit does not, it only has a couple of lounges. The food is pretty good, especially the specialty places. But if you really want nightlife then Royal is a better choice.

I agree with all of the other posters. We loved the Summit, but our children (in their 30's) were bored to death. They love to dance, good music and a lively night life. The Summit lacks this. I also suggest Royal Caribbean. Great nightlife, music, dancing (club-like) and comedy club. Never saw my kids on Royal, as they were busy venue hopping! ;)

Was on the summit in December and I'm mid thirties. Entertainment was pretty poor compared to NCL. The magic show was a joke and we took in one comedy show, which I didn't find the least bit funny. Now the positives, I never felt crowded on the ship, lots of space around the pools, enjoyed the food. For the most part service was very good. We are booked with celebrity again in April so the entertainment wasn't enough to deter me from them. We also had the classic drink package and didn't have any trouble finding drinks we wanted. I much prefer celebrity's drink package over NCL's. With celebrity you can get iced coffees, bottled water, frozen drinks, etc.

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We sailed several Carnival and one Holland America before coming to Celebrity and love Celebrity. I thought the shows were better than Carnival by far which seemed mostly audience participation bits. Nightlife is more subdued but folks seem to really like the silent disco at night. Again, depends on your cruise, the shorter Caribbean cruises seemed to be more active than the transatlantic.

The food on Celebrity was better than Carnival I thought. I'm also a self proclaimed foodie. If you look at some of the trip reports in my signature line, you'll see tons of food photos - especially the earlier ones, I seemed to stop taking photos if I know I've tried a dish previously.

Can't comment on the drink package as I could never drink enough to even get close to it being worth while.

For entertainment stick to Rcl or NCL. We enjoy cruising Celebrity, but entertainment can be iffy at best. We are not foodies but our last cruise on the Constellation food was disappointing. We have another cruise planned with Celebrity, but itinerary was the draw, not the ship. In our 50s but still like to have fun in the evenings. Hope this helps.

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Hello Everyone,

 

My DH and I are thinking about booking our first Celebrity cruise on the Summit (June 2018). We have both cruised Carnival before 3 times actually, and we now looking for an upgrade due to our last cruise..

 

Can anyone comment on the night life as we are both in our mid-30's and love to dance at night.. What is the average age group on board? How is the food because we are both major foodies.. lol.. Is their drink package worth it? Can you get most drinks with the classic drink package or is the premium package the only way to be happy?

 

PLEASE ANY COMMENT OR CONCERNS ARE WELCOME!!!!

Hi,

My wife and did 7 nights on Constellation from Venice to Barcelona last summer at age 39/40. It was our first cruise on any line. Our next cruise will be the 2018 Independence Day cruise on Summit. Is that the June cruise you are referring to? Maybe we'll see you there!

I think you will enjoy Celebrity very much. We certainly did. For our European cruise, I would put the average age around 45-50. There were plenty of kids but the ship was by no means overrun with them. I never had an issue with children annoying me or getting in my way. I'm trying to keep zero expectations for the next cruise, as I have no idea how different the demographics will be on a North American cruise compared to a European one.

We were very happy wit all the food. We ate in the MDR most nights but tried each venue at least once. No complaints with the food at all! We were on the premium drink package. It really depends on your tastes whether you would be satisfied with the classic vs. the premium. We looked at the list of what brands of beverages were available under premium vs. classic and decided we wanted to go premium.

As far as dancing, there was ballroom-style dancing in the atrium and modern club-style dancing in one of the lounges most nights.

Let me know if you have any more questions!

We just left the Equinox. Night activity was mainly composed of a "Silent Disco" where everyone where headphones so the load music doesn't bother others. We went just to check it out and nobody dancing. We didn't stay long but it seemed everyone was mad because they were playing poor music and most weren't happy. I don't know more but maybe somebody else can chime in.

I agree with the other comments. If you are looking for a busy day and music/dancing at night, go with RCCL. Celebrity is fantastic, but it's more "refined" with an older crowd (but still fun!). We made the switch mid-40's after getting tired of the belly-flop mentality with kids running wild all over the ship. The no-smoking on Celebrity is also a huge deal for us (wife has asthma). Now we're able to gamble and breathe at the same time :o)

We just left the Equinox. Night activity was mainly composed of a "Silent Disco" where everyone where headphones so the load music doesn't bother others. We went just to check it out and nobody dancing. We didn't stay long but it seemed everyone was mad because they were playing poor music and most weren't happy. I don't know more but maybe somebody else can chime in.

We were on Reflection in February and had the exact opposite experience with the Silent Disco. It was great! There were so many folks dancing, that they ran out of headphones one night. They also did the silent disco on our last sea day on the pool deck. If you weren't participating, it was still fun watching folks dance without you hearing any music. I suppose whomever is doing the DJ'ing may make it a different experience on different ships.

We just left the Equinox. Night activity was mainly composed of a "Silent Disco" where everyone where headphones so the load music doesn't bother others. We went just to check it out and nobody dancing. We didn't stay long but it seemed everyone was mad because they were playing poor music and most weren't happy. I don't know more but maybe somebody else can chime in.

We were on the Equinox first week of June and both nights we went to the silent disco it was busy and lots of people were dancing. The music was great. Goes to show you how different each cruise is.

Hmm, we're sailing with Celebrity for the first time this September, on Infinity for the itinerary, having sailed many times on RCI.

We were of the understanding that Celebrity was more 'up market', 5* as opposed to 4*, suggesting the food, service and entertainment would be of better quality. Maybe that is what the term "refined", used in previous posts, is referring to?

We will certainly enjoy Alaska but from reading here, it appears we could be a little disappointed with the entertainment and nightlife. At around 50, we're not young but we're certainly not old either.

We will keep an open mind and be sure to make the most of the ship and what it has to offer.

Yep, Celebrity is much different than Carnival. Average age will vary a lot depending on the length of the cruise and time of year.

For mid-30's, you may get bored at night as the dancing is geared for those who remember the '60's. The shows have some you might like but generally they are geared for the older passengers (comedians joking about old people, jugglers, ventroloquists, classical music, etc).

Premium drink package is a must!

Hello Everyone,

 

My DH and I are thinking about booking our first Celebrity cruise on the Summit (June 2018). We have both cruised Carnival before 3 times actually, and we now looking for an upgrade due to our last cruise..

 

Can anyone comment on the night life as we are both in our mid-30's and love to dance at night.. What is the average age group on board? How is the food because we are both major foodies.. lol.. Is their drink package worth it? Can you get most drinks with the classic drink package or is the premium package the only way to be happy?

 

PLEASE ANY COMMENT OR CONCERNS ARE WELCOME!!!!

 

Thanks in advance and Happy Sailing!!

:*:*:*:*:*:*

The ages on the ship will depend on when in June you book. If before schools in the tri state get out you will have an older crowd. If after, lots of people your age but with kids.

If you are looking for an upgrade but want more activity- I would suggest Royal Caribbean. Same company as Celebrity but geared more to activity.

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I have to agree with DalGirl. For a step up from Carnival, with nightlife and lots of young-adult activities, RC might be the best choice. Celebrity is wonderful, but somewhat more refined and sedate. Few 30 somethings on the ship, and I myself am 62. I will say that the public art (all modern) is fantastic! (not talking about the art-auction here, which is atrocious). If you are into art, somewhat upscale presentation, but not a lot of nightlife, Celebrity is a great choice.

 

We will certainly enjoy Alaska but from reading here, it appears we could be a little disappointed with the entertainment and nightlife. At around 50, we're not young but we're certainly not old either.

 

We will keep an open mind and be sure to make the most of the ship and what it has to offer.

It depends on what kind of nightlife you are in to. If you want a real club type experience (DJ, lights, glow sticks etc) you are not going to find it on Celebrity. Although on the Equinox last month they were passing out glow sticks at the Silent Disco.

Each night in the main lounge there will probably be a band. It depends on the cruise director, but usually each night will have a theme (50s, 60s 70s 80s, beatles, abba etc). On those nights they will start off primarily playing that type of music but will transition into a wider variety as the night goes on. The bands normally play from 10 to midnight, then usually the DJ will come on (if there are enough people still there). I've seen cruises where it's going till 3am or later, and others where it's dead at midnight and they close the lounge. You just never know what the crowd will be like from cruise to cruise. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for out Oct 1st sailing on the Infinity. Hopefully there will be some party animals on that one:cool:;p

We're sailing Celebrity Infinity to Alaska in mid September for the first time...I need to check the roll call LOL! I am hoping that there is nice entertainment on the Ship. The ship looks amazing and I can't wait to see the difference from NCL, Princess or Disney. The only iffy thing is the Formal nights. DH does NOT want to take a suit, he will do a Sport Coat and insists that suits aren't required for the MDR. I hope this is true.

Hmm, we're sailing with Celebrity for the first time this September, on Infinity for the itinerary, having sailed many times on RCI.

 

We were of the understanding that Celebrity was more 'up market', 5* as opposed to 4*, suggesting the food, service and entertainment would be of better quality. Maybe that is what the term "refined", used in previous posts, is referring to?

 

We will certainly enjoy Alaska but from reading here, it appears we could be a little disappointed with the entertainment and nightlife. At around 50, we're not young but we're certainly not old either.

 

We will keep an open mind and be sure to make the most of the ship and what it has to offer.

Hmm, we're sailing with Celebrity for the first time this September, on Infinity for the itinerary, having sailed many times on RCI.

 

We were of the understanding that Celebrity was more 'up market', 5* as opposed to 4*, suggesting the food, service and entertainment would be of better quality. Maybe that is what the term "refined", used in previous posts, is referring to?

 

We will certainly enjoy Alaska but from reading here, it appears we could be a little disappointed with the entertainment and nightlife. At around 50, we're not young but we're certainly not old either.

 

We will keep an open mind and be sure to make the most of the ship and what it has to offer.

I think you will find Celebrity is more upscale than RCL. I normally cruise RCL but was on Summit last year and enjoyed it. I am on Infinity this coming December. Overall, I found Celebrity more upscale than RCL. But I would, and do, sail either in a heartbeat. But I would not cruise Carnival again :-)

We're sailing Celebrity Infinity to Alaska in mid September for the first time...I need to check the roll call LOL! I am hoping that there is nice entertainment on the Ship. The ship looks amazing and I can't wait to see the difference from NCL, Princess or Disney. The only iffy thing is the Formal nights. DH does NOT want to take a suit, he will do a Sport Coat and insists that suits aren't required for the MDR. I hope this is true.

Celebrity has gone to Evening Chic in lieu of formal nights. Evening Chic really applies only to the MDR as the specialty restaurants, Luminae (suite guests), and Blu (Aqua class) are smart casual all the time. The buffet is always casual.

With Evening Chic, for men, you will see everything from open collar dress shirt and nice trousers to tuxes. The vast majority of those will be men in sports coats, some with tie and some not. Women run a similar range, from slacks and nice top, to sundresses, to cocktail attire, to formal evening wear. Since you are in Alaska and packing for cooler weather and therefore need to pack heavier clothing, it has been my experience that fewer folks pack really dressy or formal attire. They want the space that formal clothes take up for clothing that is more appropriate for the climate.

Another thing about Celebrity that I have not seen mentioned thus far. There are very few announcements during the day. The Captain and the Cruise Director do a late morning announcement. Besides announcing that the ship has been cleared for disembarkation at a port, there won't be any announcements other than in an emergency.

We're sailing Celebrity Infinity to Alaska in mid September for the first time...I need to check the roll call LOL! I am hoping that there is nice entertainment on the Ship. The ship looks amazing and I can't wait to see the difference from NCL, Princess or Disney. The only iffy thing is the Formal nights. DH does NOT want to take a suit, he will do a Sport Coat and insists that suits aren't required for the MDR. I hope this is true.

He does not need either a suit or a jacket. We did Alaska a couple of years ago, you will see limited formal dress. You are better off bringing layered clothes because that is what you will really need.